Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

These are the hardest-to-spell words in the English language
CNN ^ | 21 May 2019 | Mallory Hughes

Posted on 05/21/2019 5:02:30 AM PDT by MeneMeneTekelUpharsin

(CNN) Bondieuserie. Bewusstseinslage. Ayacahuite.

Most of us wouldn't even know how to pronounce those words, let alone spell them. The Scripps National Spelling Bee is a week away and it is sure to be filled with a plethora of problematic words. An international team of linguists from the language-learning app Babbel partnered with Merriam-Webster to analyze a decade's worth of words and find out what knocked out Bee contestants in the final round.

Bondieuserie [bohn-dyooz-ree]: banal and often shoddy religious art (almost all religious art)

Zenaida [zen-eye-da]: any bird of a genus of tropical American pigeons (know of some Mexican women with this name)

Schwärmerei [schvair-muh-RYE]: excessive unbridled enthusiasm or attachment (Hillary or Obama fans)

Ayacahuite (Spanish) [ah-jah-kah-WEE-tay]: a large Mexican pine tree with long needles and extremely large yellowish red cones (nope - it's Indian dialect, probably Aztec)

Minhag (Hebrew) [min-HAHG]: Jewish religious custom (of name calling your wife)

(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: borrowed; clickbait; english; fakenews; foreignword; french; german; spelling; spellingbee; words
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-65 next last
To: 3boysdad
"supercalifragilisticexpialidocious"...Benny Hill style.
21 posted on 05/21/2019 5:47:30 AM PDT by Bloody Sam Roberts (Elitist Liberals have no idea the hunger and strength of the beast they have uncaged.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin

The older I get the more I struggle with spelling.

I had trouble spelling IBM the other day...


22 posted on 05/21/2019 5:50:39 AM PDT by moovova
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Mr Ramsbotham

It’s hilarious to watch a parade of home-schooled Indian kids on the stage. Another black eye for expensive, futile public education.

The spelling bee issues a finite list of words so it’s possible to cover all the bases, which these kids do, memory lapses notwithstanding. It’s a bit silly to focus on obscure eyechart type words that are never used in everyday communication.


23 posted on 05/21/2019 5:52:42 AM PDT by relictele
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin
These are the hardest-to-spell words in the English language

Not one of the words listed is English.

24 posted on 05/21/2019 5:56:01 AM PDT by rjsimmon (The Tree of Liberty Thirsts)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: backwoods-engineer
It was more balanced that usual, did you catch:
Schwärmerei [schvair-muh-RYE]: excessive unbridled enthusiasm or attachment (Hillary or Obama fans)
hmmm?
25 posted on 05/21/2019 6:09:05 AM PDT by null and void (The press is always lying. When they aren't actively lying, they are actively concealing the truth.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 15 | View Replies]

To: null and void; backwoods-engineer; Gamecock; SaveFerris; PROCON; sparklite2; Rebelbase
Schwärmerei [schvair-muh-RYE]: excessive unbridled enthusiasm or attachment


26 posted on 05/21/2019 6:12:27 AM PDT by Larry Lucido
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 25 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin

They forgot Tchoutacabouffa River. River is not that hard but the other part is.


27 posted on 05/21/2019 6:17:39 AM PDT by 762X51
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: BuffaloJack
English does not contain accent or diacritical marks.

It usually doesn't, please coöperate when it does.

BOOM, touché!

28 posted on 05/21/2019 6:18:26 AM PDT by null and void (The press is always lying. When they aren't actively lying, they are actively concealing the truth.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: moovova

The older I get the more I struggle with spelling.

Yes, I have difficulty spelling my name on the bottom of numerous tax forms each year.
Very hard for me.

I’ve been thinking of asking the accountant to do it, so I do not have to look at the forms.


29 posted on 05/21/2019 6:22:29 AM PDT by DUMBGRUNT ("The enemy has overrun us. We are blowing up everything. Vive la France!"Dien Bien Phu last message.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 22 | View Replies]

To: BuffaloJack
"English does not contain accent or diacritical marks. Nor does it contain spanish, hebrew or other stuff."

Did you not notice the, "CNN" origin? It's like the, "trans" prefix; one should assume the opposite of anything that follows.

30 posted on 05/21/2019 6:23:30 AM PDT by outofsalt (If history teaches us anything, it's that history rarely teaches us anything.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: DUMBGRUNT

-—The older I get the more I struggle with spelling.——

Remember, the rule of 65

After reaching 65 years of age, minor spelling and grammatical errors can be ignored


31 posted on 05/21/2019 6:24:51 AM PDT by bert ( (KE. NP. N.C. +12)There were Democrat espionage operations on Republican candidates)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 29 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin

For MSM this would be honesty, integrity, and moralistic


32 posted on 05/21/2019 6:25:31 AM PDT by okie 54
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin
Mallory Hughes:


33 posted on 05/21/2019 6:53:52 AM PDT by nwrep
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin

bookmark


34 posted on 05/21/2019 6:56:03 AM PDT by simpson96
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin
banal and often shoddy religious art (almost all religious art)
====================

Well, that's a little harsh. Didn't you see ...?


35 posted on 05/21/2019 7:07:40 AM PDT by sparklite2 (Don't mind me. I'm just a contrarian.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin

A few common spelling errors and wrong words in phrases.

Take it for granite. Should be ‘granted’.

Superseed - should be supersede.

Heart wrenching - should be ‘rending’ meaning tearing.

Tow the line - should be ‘toe’ - put your toe on the line.

Lightening - should be lightning - electricity in the sky.

Pour over - should be ‘pore’ as when you are studying a document.

Step on the breaks - should be ‘brakes’ - the things that make the car stop.

Peak my interest - should be pique.


36 posted on 05/21/2019 7:17:18 AM PDT by Drawsing (Fools show their annoyance at once, the prudent man overlooks an insult. Proverbs 12:16)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin

covfefe!


37 posted on 05/21/2019 7:17:43 AM PDT by Buttons12
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin

Could we just agree on how to spell “cancel”?


38 posted on 05/21/2019 8:12:34 AM PDT by gandalftb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: gandalftb

Just getting the Freeper who puts “braking” in the key words of breaking news articles to use the correct word would be a start.


39 posted on 05/21/2019 8:52:58 AM PDT by piasa (Attitude adjustments offered here free of charge.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 38 | View Replies]

To: MeneMeneTekelUpharsin

Truth is not part of their vocabulary.


40 posted on 05/21/2019 8:55:24 AM PDT by going hot (happiness is a momma deuce)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-65 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson